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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chest · temple · kid · kick · charge · row · mouse · cue

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. chest — of your body
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. cue — a hint
  7. kick — in football
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — to tease
  10. charge — electricity
  11. cue — for pool
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cue — a signal
  14. row — to paddle
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. charge — in control
  19. row — a line
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. chest — a box
  24. charge — a price

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com